NATIONAL Foods Limited says its proposed entry into the dairy industry failed to materialise as parties that were involved could not agree on the transaction, but the company will continue to explore other growth opportunities.
The company last year intended to expand its product portfolio through the acquisition of a significant stake in a dairy and juice company, Pangolin Products.
In the transaction, Natfoods was set to acquire a 50 percent stake in Pangolin Products, a company formed by Probrands directors, Neil Philp, Calum Philp and Tidings Chimpondah which had a focus on the production of long-life milk.
Natfoods chief executive officer Mike Lashbrook in an emailed response, said despite the transaction failing, the company will continue to seek opportunities for organic and acquisitive growth.
“National Foods had proposed entry into the dairy industry in partnership with another entity but unfortunately we were not able to close the transaction to the satisfaction of all parties. As an organisation we will continue to seek out opportunities for organic and acquisitive growth”, he said
According to Lashbrook, the transaction was aimed at expanding the existing product portfolio, with particular focus on the production of long-life milk which currently has an estimated 40 percent share of the liquid milk market.
The transaction was also subject to approval by the Competition and Tariffs Commission (CTC) which last year rejected plans by another Innscor Holdings subsidiary Irvine’s Zimbabwe to acquire a 59 percent shareholding in Probrands.
On other hand Lashbrook said the group’s cooking oil capacity is 5 000MT per month following acquisition of Pure Oils. FinX
